Veteran sports writer Jim Utter covers NASCAR for The Charlotte Observer and its racing site, ThatsRacin.com. In this space, Jim writes about all things NASCAR and other forms of racing which may also be relevant ... or not.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Team swap at Richard Petty Motorsports

Richard Petty Motorsports announced on Monday it had swapped the crew chiefs and team members between its Nos. 9 and 43 Sprint Cup Series teams, effective this weekend. Mike Ford will serve as crew chief for driver Marcos Ambrose
on the No. 9 Ford team while crew chief Todd Parrott has been assigned to driver Aric Almirola's No. 43 Ford team. In addition, team members from both teams
will also make the switch. RPM currently has one win, three poles, 10 top-10 and three top-five
finishes this season in the Cup series between the two teams. The team was also in position to
make the Chase for the second consecutive season with Ambrose."We're continuing to
make improvements at Richard Petty Motorsports and we've added talented people
to our organization this season," said Sammy Johns, director of competition.
"This move is to make sure that we are using that talent to the fullest to get
the best results for our teams each weekend. We feel this adjustment will
strengthen the organization, allow us to continue to compete for wins and
ultimately challenge for championships." Ford and Parrott are
both veteran, winning crew chiefs. Parrott has one Cup championship, a
Daytona 500 victory and 31 Cup wins to his credit. Ford has six
Chase berths and 25 Cup wins on his resume.
"Aric has really
shown the desire and dedication to get his first Sprint Cup Series win," Parrott
said. "It was great our team helped lead Marcos to his first NASCAR Sprint Cup
Series win and poles. We are now ready to help direct Almirola and the No. 43
team to the same results and better."

Ford is also ready
to work with Ambrose and the No. 9 race team. "Marcos is a racer
who has proven to win poles and races," Ford said. "Our goal is to take my
experiences and make sure we can consistently run up front and continue to win
races."